John Edyvean
John Edyvean was a British engineer from Cornwall who developed an inclined plane system, to reduce the necessity for locks on the UK canal network.
In 1773, during the reign of George III, a plan was made to create a canal from Mawgan Porth, through various parishes including St Mawgan, St. Columb Major, Little Colan, and St. Columb Minor, to Porth. The project was meant to convey goods from the coast inland and eventually to the south coast.
However, Mr Edyvean died before the project was completed at a cost of £100,000. An attempt to revive the scheme was made in 1829 by a Mr Retallick of Liskeard, but this too amounted to nothing.
Edyvean died in the 1780s. An obituary of the time in a monthly review related:
